Scary

 

by

Dave Amaditz

It's that time of year again for scary.

I don't mean Halloween-scary, although it's a sure thing that I'll soon be bombarded with chilling movies filling the TV screens and children of all ages marching through my neighborhood dressed in frightening costumes. That type of scary is a given, and I'm okay with it. In fact, I quite look forward to watching movies with my children as well as seeing all of the uniquely  frightening and not-so-frightening costumes the neighborhood children wear to collect Halloween candy.

The scary I'm talking about deals with acquisition time at the publishing houses.

I'm told that fall in the publishing business is one of the busiest times of the year, as editors come to editorial and acquisition meetings prepared to pitch the novels they most want to see published. Normally, I wouldn't spend too much time thinking about the process, but this year, I happen to have two stories with two separate houses. For the past few months I've been patiently waiting to hear a response. Of course, I would love to hear a positive response, but as I sit here waiting, I find myself wondering what would be scarier - - receiving a message from the editors with wishes for better publication luck elsewhere, or the continual wait in limbo that comes with not receiving a response.

Is there anyone else out there still waiting for a message like me? How does it make you feel?

Snarky, Spooky Series by Patti Larsen and Kate McMurry/Marie August

SC POE'S INDIE E-BOOK SAMPLER, #23

In compliance with this month's blogue theme, Poe browsed for Sweet and Scary samples. In vain, of course. Poe should have remembered that Snark is the preferred attitude indie ewriters take to just about any genre. Poe also confirmed that snarky YA stories rarely get really scary. Poe has had to make do with Spooky. 

These books are so light and lively that popcorn readers could probably gobble up all 23 before Hallowe'en. 



FAMILY MAGIC
(The Hayle Coven Novels)

by Patti Larsen

Self-published, 2011
Poe thinks this is YA fantasy chick-lit

First sentence: I batted at the curl of smoke drifting off the tip of my candle and tried not to sneeze. 

"Being part of a demon raising is way less exciting than it sounds." Indeed, MC Sydlynn Hayle is so detached from her witchy DNA that she doesn't even know how to magick the ceremonial candle smoke out of her eyes.

But Mom's the Coven leader, and Dad is Haralthazar, Demon Lord of the Seventh Plane of Demonicon. (Did you know that there are nice Demons? Dad is one.)  

Sydlynn's relationship with Mom is the very pattern of adolescent-girl rebellion--but instead of arguing over curfews or car-use, the conflict is about how soon Sydlynn can leave the Coven. 

Larsen's always stylish and entertaining. In this case, her set-up (while amusing) feels overlong. Only in chapter 4 do we learn that Sydlynn's refusal to develop her powers will literally destroy her mother.

The sample was long, but Poe stopped 10% into the story, judging the book plot-light and situation- and character-rich. 

If you prefer your fantasy on the light side, then the 20 titles of this series may entertain you some time. 

GIRL VS GHOST
(Misdirected Magic Trilogy)

by Kate McMurry & Marie August

Self-published, 2011
Poe thinks this is light contemporary YA fantasy

First sentence: Isabel Lindley surreptitiously pressed the backlight button on her watch. 

The summoning spell wasn't even Isabel's idea. Her friend Tripp's the gal who dressed up like the Reaper and poured salt all over Izzy's bedroom floor. Yet somehow Izzy's the only one who can see and hear the entity who just dropped out of the ceiling.

In a neat twist on the typical summoning plotline, this ghost is no evil opportunist. He doesn't even know who he was, where (or when or how) he died. The flighty Tripp diagnoses sudden-death PTSD and then (perhaps bored by a haunting that leaves her out) she takes off without even sweeping up the salt on the floor. Now Izzy must cope with that, as well as the stressed-out ghost.   

The story features illustrations as light and pleasant as the writing. 

If you're ready for a nibble of reading-candy, then this series looks like a quick, light read. 

Get Scared!

How about some willies? Or some heebie jeebies? Come on, pick a scare, any scare!

By Kitty Griffin

 Why do we enjoy thrills? Especially scary ones? Do you close your eyes when you watch a scary movie? Or like me, do you turn down the sound? 

Whatever the reason, scary stories have always been a source of enjoyment. Here are a few that haunt me still.

The Scarecrows by Robert Westall

This atmospheric tale pulls you in ever so slowly. The story is wrapped around strong emotions, jealousy, hatred, and love. Pulsing underneath is murder and betrayal. The main character, Simon, doesn’t understand why his mother and sister seem to have forgotten his late father so he seeks solace elsewhere. He seeks it in a place that embraces his anger.

All I have to do is pick up this book and read the opening, “It was the night before the Fund-raising Effort that the devils came. So it seemed to Simon Wood ever after.

            But they were formless then.

            They came with the whispering.”

Brrrrr.

This next book, “The Satanic Mill” by Otto Preussler isn’t just scary—it’s terrifying! What I didn’t know as I read it was that the journey that the main character, Krabat, takes mirrors the journey that Germans took as Hitler secured power. It’s a story of finding power and the temptations that go with it. While it’s called the Satanic Mill, it isn’t the devil that Krabat does battle with, rather it’s magic. This book received the German Prize for Children and Youth Literature in 1972. A fierce, powerful book that pushes temptation to the edge.

“The Eyes of the Killer Robot” by John Bellairs was one I read to my children and boy, oh boy, was that wild. This story is the fifth book in the Johnny Dixon mystery series and it doesn’t fail to thrill.

Those three are delicious for the fright they give. Here are a few other titles that will give you chills.

“The Silver Kiss” by Annette Curtis Klause is a vampire story that will put things in a different light.

What are the events that shape us? Find out more about Frankenstein, yes Dr. Frankenstein, when he was but a lad in “This Dark Endeavor” by Kenneth Oppel.

Make sure you have the windows locked and the doors barred when you start reading “The Forest of Hands and Teeth” by Carrie Ryan. That scratching at the door will give you heart palpitations.

What are your favorite scares?

Illustrate a Scary Scene

Opera Box scene from The Blue Aspic by Edward Gorey
 

I bought this poster by Edward Gorey, a master illustrator of the macabre, at an estate sale this past weekend. When I got home, I propped it against the kitchen cabinets, went off to do chores in another room, and forgot about it -- until my twenty-something son walked in the door for a visit. "Aaagh!" I heard him exclaim. "What the heck is this creepy picture?"

It is creepy, isn't it? And yet it's just a drawing of a group of people sitting in an opera box.

So what changes it from benign to spooky?

I have some ideas, along with other tips for illustrating fear and menace, which I'll list below. But first, I strongly recommend you take a peek at Cynthia Light Brown's excellent post Write a Scary Scene; she has lots of useful ideas for the process of crafting a scary scene, as well as good explanations of the whys of fright, all of which will help illustrators as well as writers.

1. Darken your palette.  Primal fear thrives in the absence of light and bright -- just think about dark alleys, dark and stormy nights, black caves, the villain's black hat.  Gorey's use of pen and ink with areas of deep blacks and cross-hatched shadows is probably heavily responsible for the baseline dark atmosphere in it.

If you do use color in your scary scenes, think about mixing in black; even slightly darker shades will suggest a worrisome mood better than brights or pastels. Or use color in a limited way: dark blues and purples bring twilight and nighttime to mind. Or go bold, with the addition of just red. Blood red. One final note: yellows within a black palette will tend to be read as places of light and safety.

Some more "dark" illustrators and books to study:

 
• Pretty much anything by Chris van Allsburg



 Ditto Arthur Rackham

Little Red Riding Hood; source Fantasy-Art-Workshop



 Lane Smith does dark and creepy very, very well. (Compare the different palettes he used for Spooky ABC and It's a Book. And note how his use of yellow here does NOT lend a feeling of safety.)

 

2. Obscure even more. Being in the dark figuratively as well as literally heightens unease: what you don't know might kill you!

 

Gorey uses this technique in his illustration as well. The scariest figure in the opera box is the man with the beard and wearing a heavy fur - his expression is hard to read and the viewer likely feels some unease about what's beneath his heavy clothes. Gorey also crops the picture in a way that feels slightly disconcerting - lopping off the bottom of the bas-relief face on the opera box.

 

Besides obscuring details and cropping, point of view can also be effective in creating the anxious feeling you get from not seeing everything. Perhaps show your scene through a keyhole or from under a bed. Or show things the endangered character doesn't see - or have her see things we can't. Either approach will add to the tension.

 

Dave McKean's cropped illustration for the opening scene of The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman gives me the shivers and compels me to turn the page! (Sorry for the crappy photo.)

 

3. Use light - and shadow - to highlight what the viewer should notice.

Bright, focused light used sparingly will direct the viewer's attention in a dramatic way. Shadows - especially ones that are long and looming, that extend from something out of the image, or that highlight facial features in a disconcerting way up the scariness quotient every time. I can well remember how the long shadows cast by a worried Miss Clavel as she raced to the bedside of Madeline made my heart beat extra fast when I was a young child and first encountered Ludwig Bemelman's classic picture book.

 

4. Size DOES count.

In general, characters (and other threats) that are big will be understood to be threatening; ones that are small will seem vulnerable or benign.

 

In Gorey's illustration, the guy in the fur feels menacing in part because he's taller and about twice as wide as his companions.

 

Exaggerating size differences is an easy way to heighten the sense of threat. This can also be accomplished by use of perspective. Characters' body language also influences their perceived size. When we're scared we pull in and make ourselves a smaller target, like crouching, ducking or tucking arms close to our bodies. When we're aggressive (or responding to a threat with fight), arms go out, fingers may spread, stance widens. 

 

In addition, characters that loom or even just lean forward slightly (like the guy above) seem more frightening - as do small things in sufficient number to swarm.

 

5.  Pay attention to facial expressions and body language. There's not a single facial expression that indicates fear or menace, nor a single type of body language. Partly this is because of the degree and timing of the threat - anxious, startled or terrified will produce different expressions. But in general, when we are frightened, our eyes widen and eyebrows go up and together (likely to let in more light and help us see better), our lips part and may stretch sideways (perhaps to help us get more oxygen in preparation for fight or flight - or ready to scream), we may turn from the threat and look toward it from the corners of our eyes. This site on Emotional Competence has more interesting science about the physiology and outward expression of fear.

 

One interesting thing to keep in mind: if you want to create a sense of fear or aggression in the viewer, it particularly helps to show the protagonist's expressions. This is because humans are primed to unconsciously mimic those they identify with.

 

6. Use details to advantage. Little things can have powerful effects. In Gorey's illustration, the expression on the bas-relief face is disturbing, and the twining of the ribbon around it suggests a large and powerful snake -- and I'm sure centering the scary guy right above the face was no accident. The high collar of the woman evokes Dracula, while the fur hints at killing. Even the large ring on the man's hand suggests a weapon and power.

 

7. One last thing: Titrate the scary quotient to your audience. Fear is a part of life from the start, so scary elements can be important parts of books for even the youngest readers.



By Carol Baicker-McKee from Cheep, Cheep by Julie Stiegemeyer

But obviously, in the interest of not terrifying small fry, it's a good idea to temper the scariness of images for younger children. In the above picture from a book of mine for babies and toddlers, I chose to depict a chick anxious about a strange noise as more unsure than terrified. The continued use of a cheery nursery palette provides reassurance. In addition, the reader already knows from previous illustrations that the strange noise comes from a hatching egg rather than something actually threatening. The cartoonish look of the character also adds to the sense of safety. These elements let the young child be aware of the character's emotions, while being in the position of "big guy" who understands that everything will be okay - so the overall tone can actually be more warm and humorous than upsetting.

 

Any other thoughts or tips? How do you go about getting the "scary" just right in your illustrations?

Rutgers Revisited

by Marcy Collier

Last year about this time, my insides were filled with collywobbles (see Andrea’s post on 10/5/12 for the definition). Last year I had attended the Rutgers One-On-One-Plus Conference for the first time. Many of the Route 19ers had attended or taught at past conferences and gave me all kinds of tips to ease my nervousness.

Fast forward to October 2012, and I was accepted for a second year to the conference. I was extremely excited and still a bit nervous, but a least I knew what to expect this year. For those of you who are attending, I wanted to add my advice and re-post the article that helped me tremendously last year to get ready for conference day.

Here are my thoughts: 

Go back through the mentor list posted on the Rutgers website http://www.ruccl.org/mentors_2012.html. Sometimes additions are made to the mentor list. Write down the top ten people you’re most interested in meeting. Put stars by the top three. 

I’m sort of a shy person. It was extremely hard me last year to approach an editor/agent/author. I waited for an appropriate time, sucked up my nervous feelings and went for it.

Have your pitch memorized.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions in your five-on-five session. Come prepared with a list.

Bring summaries and/or first chapters of other pieces you’re working on in case you have time left in your one-on-one session.

If you've revised your ms, bring the revised first chapter. I had my mentor look over my revised version during our session and was able to get great feedback on both versions.

Get to the conference early enough. Allow yourself enough time if you get lost. I got there early last year and didn’t feel rushed. I had time to go through the mentor list. If you have a smart phone, bring it (on vibrate of course). Sometimes mentors are added and you may not have notes on them. It is nice to do a bit of last minute research at the breakfast table if necessary.   

Meet new friends and rekindle old friendships. The children’s writing community is one of the friendliest and most helpful in the world. I feel lucky to be a part of it and a part of Rutgers again this year. The time and preparation that goes into this conference makes it one of the best children's writing conferences in the country. 

Below is the post from last year along with links of other posts that I’ve found helpful.

Best of luck. Hope to meet you there!

2011 Rutgers One-on-One Plus--tips for making the most of the Conference

A round-table with Route 19 Rutgers veterans.

Participating: Kitty, Susan, Cynthia, Dave. They've been invited to combined total of 10 of these spectacular Conferences. (Kitty's also served as a Mentor, twice.)

BEFORE

Susan: Plan your networking. Find the list of Mentors posted on the Conference website.

Dave: Then research who and what they've published. Using Publishers Marketplace, you can go back five years or more and see every book and writer they worked with. This lets you focus on the Mentors most appropriate for you.

Susan: From that, create a target list of Mentors you want face time with.

Kitty: Write questions down in advance so you don't forget any.

Dave: Make two lists. First, questions about your ms and anything else you want to discuss with your Mentor. You'll use this list for the 1-on-1 critique. Second list: questions relevant to the writing business, for the 5-on-5 roundtable session.

Susan: Know your lines. Memorize your one-sentence author bio and your one-sentence elevator pitch(es). Practice out loud until they trip off your tongue.

Dave: Bring your own business cards. You'll pass them out to other writers. This is a perfect chance to network, make contacts, and make your name known.

DURING

Kitty's ABC: Always Be ready to ask for a CARD. (Jot notes on each card—e.g. "looking for MG or YA"—and build a file of editors and agents)

Cynthia: For the overall Conference--be bold. You don't have to prove to people that you're a good writer--they know that already. Don't hesitate to buttonhole any Mentors you're interested in. Give each a very short elevator pitch, and ask for their card.

Dave: Feel completely welcome to approach any Mentor. They've all come to this Conference to find writers.

Susan: Don't socialize at Registration. Well, do—but not until you check your folder to (1) identify your Mentor; (2) identify which additional Mentors will be part of your5-on-5; (3) cross those names off your Target list (because you're guaranteed face time with them); (4) reread the schedule so you have a clear idea of the shape of the day.

Now you can relax and mingle with the other writers.

Cynthia: In your 1-on-1 critique, be receptive and have the right kind of expectations. Don't expect your Mentor to offer you a contract--or even to ask you to revise and submit to them. Do expect to learn a lot from them.

There's a good chance your Mentor doesn't handle the kind of stuff you write. My first Mentor was a fellow writer; my second a fabulous editor who didn't edit the type of ms I'd sent in. But both were great writers/editors, and we really delved into my ms. I was amazed at what I learned in that short amount of time.

Susan: Don't eat lunch. At least, don't waste time standing in the long buffet line. Chomp a handful of almonds to stay the pangs, and "work" the line. It'll be full of Mentors. Grab your sandwich once the line's gone.

Dave: However, I was surprised to find that because of the sheer numbers of Mentors present, you'll have plenty of time to approach. And don't be surprised to see a Mentor sitting alone.

Susan: But the coach does turn into a pumpkin! The Conference ends rather abruptly, and most Mentors disappear like so many Cinderellas, running for the train back to Manhattan. So don't expect leisurely networking at the end of the day.

(However, if you lodge in a Manhattan hotel, like Kitty usually did, you can ride the same train. Kitty has done lots of networking on trains.)

Kitty: Wear comfortable clothes, it's a long, long day.

AFTER

Kitty: If someone answered a question or helped you with a block take time and send them a personal thank you.

Susan: Thank the dedicated and hard-working Conference staff, too.

Here are some other great links for conference tips:

http://taralazar.com/2009/10/05/tips-for-ruccl-first-timers/

http://kiperoo.wordpress.com/2011/10/17/rutgers-2011/

Treats in the Treasure Chest

     Sometimes in the midst of a dry spell, or writer's block, or a series of form rejection letters, I like to visit my treasure chest.  It is a worn and dog-eared manila folder of stuff that I have collected over the years because something tickled my fancy in one way or another.  Right now the two things I have revisited most are my list of animal collectives and an old article about Dr. Goodword's compilation of the 100 Funniest Words in English. (The article is from 2009 and also describes his website www.alphadictionary.com)
     I have always been a person who enjoys words for all kinds of reasons - words that rhyme, words that sound silly, words that I have never encountered, or words that would KILL in Scrabble. (Who else would make their dermatologist spell the word 'xiphoid' during an exam?)  I won't pretend that any of you dear readers will become quite as excited by my sharing some of these little gems; just kind of wanted to make sure that you all have treasure chests that you too can take out when you need them the most!
     Some of the the animal collectives I have used, others I just love knowing: the more common murder of crows, gaggle of geese, yoke of oxen, litter of pigs, school of fish, gam of whales, and pride of lions are nice, but how fabulous are these: A troubling of goldfish? a scurry of squirrels? a crash of rhinoceroses? a quiver of cobras? a romp of otters? a tower of giraffes? a kaleidoscope of butterflies? 
     Robert Beard (aka Dr. Goodword), a retired linguistics professor at Bucknell University, compiled the 100 funniest words list since in his opinion the words sounded funny, because they meant something funny, or some combination of the two.  He also likes those words that are one letter away from something naughty, like formication (the sense of ants crawling on your face) or fard (facepaint or makeup).  Here are a few of my favorites:
Collywobbles:  butterflies in the stomach  
Gazump:  to buy something already promised to someone else
Kerfuffle:  nonsense or balderdash
Mumpsimus:  an outdated and unreasonable position on an issue
Pettifogger:  someone who tries to befuddle others with his speech
Slangwhanger:  a loud abusive speaker or obnoxious writer
Vomitory:  an exit or outlet
Wabbit:  exhausted, tired or worn out
     You just can't read these without smiling.  Hence the treasure.
For those interested in a chocolate treasure chest (which might also make you smile), I am including the picture and website recipe of something which came up when I googled treasure chest image... though I can't imagine it only takes 30 minutes to prepare! I think I still prefer my treasures in word form...

www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/hidden-treasure-chest-cake

Write a Scary Scene

By Cynthia Light Brown

From LoopZilla on Creative Commons

This month our theme is “Sweet and Scary," so here goes scary.

1. Write what scares you. If you’re not scared writing the scene, we won’t be scared reading it. So think about what terrifies you (write what you know) and write that. It’s best if you choose fears that are universal, but you can choose something peculiar to the main character, as long as you convince us that the mc has reason to be afraid.

Not scared yet? Try doing the actual writing in a setting where you’re feeling the fear. Maybe your basement, in the dark, after everyone has gone to bed. Maybe stay in a cabin in the woods. Write your scary scenes at night.

From Motley Pixel on Creative Commons

2. Tap into the Lizard Brain. Fear is triggered unconsciously in our brains. You know the feeling: your heart races before you even know why you’re scared. Different parts of our brain are involved in our sensing, processing, and reaction to fear. Our old brain, sometimes called our lizard brain (the amygdala) is mainly responsible for triggering a fast response to fear. When something happens – an odd sound, perhaps – your lizard brain sends out a signal out that you need to be ready to fight or take flight. Another part of your brain – your rational brain - can process the input and decide if there’s really cause to be afraid. But all the while, your lizard brain is screaming at you.

If you want to scare the pants off your readers, talk to the lizard brain. You can certainly have the main character’s rational brain try to process what’s happening (and in fact the tension between the different responses is natural and interesting), but it’s the lizard brain that gets the heart racing. What does the lizard brain understand? Not anything rational. Use the five senses:

From Mulling It Over on Creative Commons

·   Make it Dark. Sometimes partial darkness, like at dusk, can be even creepier than total darkness, because the character can see dark images. Increase the darkness as the scene progresses.

·   Unusual Sounds. Try sounds that are at the extremes; either so slight that the mc isn't sure she even hears it, or overwhelmingly loud and oppressive. The sound doesn’t even have to be related to the action. Maybe a dog barks in the distance. Perhaps there is silence at first, then changes to an intermittent tapping sound, then perhaps to something else. Or maybe there’s lots of noise, followed by silence.

·   A whiff of a scent or taste in the air. Smells are visceral, and are a fast-track to emotions. Maybe there is a metallic taste in the air. Or a smell that gives a sense of déjà-vous.

·   Cold and clammy. There’s a reason this triggers fear; because fear actually triggers a shutdown of blood to our extremities, so our limbs feel cold. We all know this instinctively, so a sudden feeling of cold feels fearful. Or you can switch it up and turn up the heat, causing the mc to sweat.

3. Start slow, then build. In scariness, as in love, anticipation is half the fun. Slowly build your scene up to the point where the BAD THING happens (or you can think of it as the SCARE). You might start the scene, or perhaps the end of the last scene, with something that is just a bit “off.” That’s how we experience things in real life, isn’t it? Our brain picks up on things subliminally first. It might be a smell that seems odd. Or just noticing that a door is not quite closed. Or an unusual car parked nearby. Something that our rational brain tells us is not a big deal, but our lizard-brain is already on alert. At that point, you don’t have to be hyper-focussed yet; the character can still be thinking about other things.

But then, the next thing that’s “off,” needs to alert our lizard-brain to start screaming at us. You might show the character still in denial, trying to fend off the lizard-brain. But we, the reader know that bad stuff is on its way.

Ideally, the reader knows – or at least guesses -  a little more than the character. But don’t let the reader know when the BAD THING will happen, or exactly what it will be. If the reader guesses what the BAD THING will be, give it a twist so that it’s something else. The resolution of the movie The Sixth Sense is a great example of a twist on what the viewer expects.

4. Keep us in the moment. This is not the time for reflection or otherwise focusing on other things. Make sure everything is focused on what is happening in the here and now. Getting back to the lizard brain again; lizards react to exactly what is happening right then and there, not what happened last week, or what the meaning of life is.